Today, nearly 18 months since the start of the post-referendum negotiations process between the Government of Sudan, or GoS, and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Government of the Republic of South Sudan, or SPLM/RSS, the two parties, and the greater international community find themselves at a cross-road as tensions escalate between Khartoum and Juba and war, at times, seems more like a probability than a possibility.

Editor's Note: Last week the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Controls, or OFAC, lifted many previous restrictions under the Sudan Sanctions Regulations, or SSR, that were hindering the development of South Sudan. To understand the profound implications this shift in policy will have for both Sudan and South Sudan, lawyer and rights activist James Bair provides a legal overview of the sanctions lifted, and how these changes translate to realities on the ground.

Editor's Note: What are the international legal ramifications for the Sudanese government's recent assault on its people in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, and across the new international boundary in South Sudan? Lawyer and rights activist James Bair writes about the numerous ways Khartoum is violating the Geneva Conventions -- to alarmingly little effect from the international community.

Who We Are and What We Do

The Satellite Sentinel Project, or SSP, a partnership between the Enough Project and DigitalGlobe, conducts monitoring of both Sudan and South Sudan to assess the human security situation, identify potential threats to civilians, and detect, deter and document war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Enough Project provides field research, policy context, and communications strategy. DigitalGlobe provides imagery from its constellation of satellites and geospatial analysis from the DigitalGlobe Analysis Center. SSP is funded primarily by Not On Our Watch.